1200 CALORIE PEOPLE

Hi! I find that with only having 1200 calories it helps to eat smaller and more frequent "meals". I am terrible about writing down my last meal of the day, so my diary will not be much help. However here is what a typical day looks like for me.

Breakfast: Oatmeal or Cereal - Between 150 and 200 cal
Snack: Apple slices, Cutie orange, sm banana - between 50 and 100 cal depending on breakfast
Lunch: Some sort of frozen ready made meal or soup - 300 cal or less
Snack: Usually greek yogurt, fresh veggies like carrot sticks or cumcumber slices - 100 cal or less
Dinner: Something like Chicken Breast with steamed veggies - 500 cal or less
Snack: If I have any calories left (I usually do), then I have a late snack like 100 cal popcorn or a 50 cal cheese stick

Basically I don't feel like I am missing out because I am eating all day long!

I am gonna get wailed on by the macro/nutrition police...

I do it different ways. Some days I do follow some balanced plans. But often I have a piece of fruit for breakfast, a salad with imitation crab or a pepper stuffed with salmon and hot sauce for lunch, no dressings, and a normal family dinner that has the bulk of my calories. Snacks are usually an orange and maybe a small handful of almonds and raisins. Some days I substitute a protein shake for lunch. I don't log and track every day, but when I do I usually come in over 1000 and under 1400. I have had blood panels done and I am doing fine (some numbers much better than before). I have lost about 10 lbs a month. I don't plan that much; I just made eating unimportant. It was hard and still is sometimes, but I look and feel a lot better. Having the one normal meal and a couple of very low cal "meals" works better for me than having a bunch of small meals (the myth of the metabolism boost from frequent feedings was busted by science anyway).

EDIT - Another MFP heresy on my part is that I do not "eat back" calories. I run 10-15 miles a week.

Try to find some substitutions for things you normally eat, like fish for chicken, carrots and ranch for chips and dip, ground turkey for beef, strawberries with sugar for bacon with your morning eggs, one glass of wine for a few beers, when you first feel hungry drink some water first... And you may have to start learning to like foods you've never been into before.

When you have a meal with your family or in a restaurant, just keep it down. Ask for your food 'dry', meaning without butter or oil. Eat until you're not hungry, but not until you're full. If you're hungry at night, ask yourself if you got enough nutrients that day that you don't need any more. Try to keep all your meals under 300 calories and keep the sugar as low as you can. Do not eat pasta, bread or potatoes more than once every few days.

I can eat 5 times a day and still manage less then 1000 calories a day...
Fat free yoghurt and fruit every morning for breakfast is less then 200, mid morning and mid afternoon snacks are either chopped carrots / peppers etc for about 100 calories ... have your main meal during hte day for less then 400 calories.. like a grilled chicken breast wrapped in bacon with lots of steamed veggies and then for dinner eat something very light.. maybe low fat soup...
My friend has just started doing this diet too and lost 18lbs in 3 weeks just from the small changes..
She says she's never eaten so much in her life, and she's still dropping weight.
Good Luck.

I do about 1200 everyday. My diary is open for friends, feel free to add!

My diary is open as well. Keep in mind I am a special case because I have had WLS, so it is difficult for me to eat more than 1200, although I have on occasion. I also try to limit carbs- no hamburger bun, limited pasta, haven't had a sandwich since December, etc.

-Kendra

You shouldn't skip meals, especially breakfast. If your body goes into starvation mode it will start eating muscle and storing fat and that's obviously not what you want. I have a few tips starting with the obvious: Do a little bit of exercise every day to gain yourself some extra calories for the day...even if it's just vacuuming or cleaning up a bit.

For breakfast you can put yourself together a low cal bowl of cereal by using fat free milk and a TON of fresh fruit (strawberries and blueberries are my favorite). As for the cereal itself I'll do 2/3 multi-grain cheerios to 1/3 ratio of a filling (diet) granole like Kashi GoLean Crunch. If you get a flavor like cinnamon it will add a lot of flavor to the mix and help you feel more full. If you can drink coffee black that will help stave off hunger for longer, also.

Lunch I've found easier to handle by buying diet bread like the Sara Lee 45 calorie/slice wheat bread. Most bread is 100 calories a slice so you can have 2 for less than the price of 1. Also, 2 ounces of chicken breast lunchmeat is only like 60 calories.

The lowest calorie easy dinner I've found is to get a fully cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, a nice 1 cup portion of steamed broccoli and some starch with it whether that be rice, potatoes, etc. Don't deprive yourself of the carbs or you will have no energy to face the next day!

Hope that helps!

You shouldn't skip meals, especially breakfast. If your body goes into starvation mode it will start eating muscle and storing fat and that's obviously not what you want. I have a few tips starting with the obvious: Do a little bit of exercise every day to gain yourself some extra calories for the day...even if it's just vacuuming or cleaning up a bit.

For breakfast you can put yourself together a low cal bowl of cereal by using fat free milk and a TON of fresh fruit (strawberries and blueberries are my favorite). As for the cereal itself I'll do 2/3 multi-grain cheerios to 1/3 ratio of a filling (diet) granole like Kashi GoLean Crunch. If you get a flavor like cinnamon it will add a lot of flavor to the mix and help you feel more full. If you can drink coffee black that will help stave off hunger for longer, also.

Lunch I've found easier to handle by buying diet bread like the Sara Lee 45 calorie/slice wheat bread. Most bread is 100 calories a slice so you can have 2 for less than the price of 1. Also, 2 ounces of chicken breast lunchmeat is only like 60 calories.

The lowest calorie easy dinner I've found is to get a fully cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, a nice 1 cup portion of steamed broccoli and some starch with it whether that be rice, potatoes, etc. Don't deprive yourself of the carbs or you will have no energy to face the next day!

Hope that helps!

It's a myth that you need to eat breakfast. Your body isn't going to go into starvation mode because you chose to eat your first meal at noon rather than 6, 7, or 8am.

My diary is open and you are welcome to add me as a friend if you like. I'm usually right at or over my 1200 cals until I exercise. Then I struggle to eat half of my exercise calories

When I see peeps asking about 1,200 calories I want to shake them... no offence.

I did it in the beginning and got NO WHERE FAST!

I checked my TDEE in February and have been eating according to that (1,850 instead of my 1,480) and I've lost 9lbs.

If you want to do 1,200, go ahead, but check the forums for people where that little food has worked.

Good luck!

I eat about 1200 calories each day. I do not starve myself, I am satisfied after each meal and I eat between 4 and 6 times a day.
Feel free to add me and check out my diary. You can also message me with any questions you may have.


P.s. Starvation mode DOES NOT EXIST :-)

Have a lovely day

i tend to eat a slightly bigger breakfast because i found that if i do that im less hungry though out the day and am less likely to over eat, i also have smaller meals during lunch and dinner and have small snacks between meals like an apple or a light yogurt

You shouldn't skip meals, especially breakfast. If your body goes into starvation mode it will start eating muscle and storing fat and that's obviously not what you want. I have a few tips starting with the obvious: Do a little bit of exercise every day to gain yourself some extra calories for the day...even if it's just vacuuming or cleaning up a bit.

For breakfast you can put yourself together a low cal bowl of cereal by using fat free milk and a TON of fresh fruit (strawberries and blueberries are my favorite). As for the cereal itself I'll do 2/3 multi-grain cheerios to 1/3 ratio of a filling (diet) granole like Kashi GoLean Crunch. If you get a flavor like cinnamon it will add a lot of flavor to the mix and help you feel more full. If you can drink coffee black that will help stave off hunger for longer, also.

Lunch I've found easier to handle by buying diet bread like the Sara Lee 45 calorie/slice wheat bread. Most bread is 100 calories a slice so you can have 2 for less than the price of 1. Also, 2 ounces of chicken breast lunchmeat is only like 60 calories.

The lowest calorie easy dinner I've found is to get a fully cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, a nice 1 cup portion of steamed broccoli and some starch with it whether that be rice, potatoes, etc. Don't deprive yourself of the carbs or you will have no energy to face the next day!

Hope that helps!

It's a myth that you need to eat breakfast. Your body isn't going to go into starvation mode because you chose to eat your first meal at noon rather than 6, 7, or 8am.

True story. You can skip whatever meal you like, as long as you hit your macros/micros. I DON'T skip breakfast because I am a cranky *kitten* if I do. Pretty much the only reason it happens on a daily basis.

When I see peeps asking about 1,200 calories I want to shake them... no offence.

I did it in the beginning and got NO WHERE FAST!

I checked my TDEE in February and have been eating according to that (1,850 instead of my 1,480) and I've lost 9lbs.

If you want to do 1,200, go ahead, but check the forums for people where that little food has worked.

Good luck!

Taking the calorie's i eat back from workouts... i average between 1300-1600 per day, i use mfp how its supposed to be used. I eat back my calories (well i try to... but 9/10 i go to bed with roughly 200cals left over :embarassed: )

The only issue im having, is because i dont use ankle weights when doing abdominal leg raises or abdominal crunches.. it wont figure out what calories iv burned :noway:


Never mind.

I eliminate fruit, and I exercise about 60-90 minutes a day, and that helps me to be at 1200 sometimes 1300. I like fruit but I like other things better, like legumes which are high in calories for the amount I love to eat, and peanut butter by the spoonful. So a lot of things are not even in my menu. I do eggs, cheese, rice, legumes, broc, spinach, salads with ranch dressing, grilled catfish, salmon, and chicken. the ranch and peanut butter are my downfalls. It gets easier for me as time goes by, I used to 1700 but didn't lose anything even though I exercised the same amount.